HCBailly plays Final Fantasy IV (Super Famicom) - Part 11 of 70

In this entry, Rosa joins our party, and Rydia learns some more magic.

Overworld Map (by Rick Bruns)

Kaipo

Map (by FlyingArmor)

Detailed map (by KeyBlade999)

At the town of Kaipo, head back to the house where Rosa was resting. Talk to Rosa, then select the DesertLight (Light of the Desert). The Light of the Desert will heal Rosa, who will mention that she left Baron to look for Cecil after word got around that the earthquake in Mist supposedly killed him. She did not believe this, and headed off to look for him. She mentions that Golbez has been chosen to take Cecil's place as Commander of the Red Wings, and ever since taking the position, Golbez has been given more and more authority in exchange for influencing him to gather the four Crystals: the Water Crystal in Mysidia. the Fire Crystal in Damcyan, the Wind Crystal in Fabul and the Earth Crystal in Toroia.

After Cecil introduces Edward and Rydia to Rosa, Rosa will come to the conclusion that if Damcyan's crystal has been taken, then Fabul will be next. Edward mentions that the way to Fabul over Hobs Mountain is frozen over. Sadly, Rydia cannot cast Fire, but Rosa tells that if she tries, she can cast Black magic as well as she summons. Rosa then decides to join the party with her skills as a White Magician, and the party rests in Kaipo for the night.

That night, Edward - unable to sleep - leaves the inn and plays his harp while wondering why Anna had to leave him. Suddenly, a monster attacks. It is just a lowly Sahagin, but this battle is for story purposes as Anna's ghost tells Edward to be brave and that he is not as weak as he thinks he is. Just keep hitting the Sahagin with Edward's weapon and you'll eventually beat him. The Sahagin dies after three hits regardless of how much damage you have done to him.

After this, Anna's spirit passes on into the great beyond, much to Edward's dismay, and tells him not to let Golbez get the crystal before telling him to give the love he gave her to the people of the world. Then, Anna's spirit disappears. 

You'll then wake up the next morning in the house where Rosa was.

In the menu, use the Change command, then move Rosa, Cecil and Edward to the back row. If you want to choose who is leading your party, press R while in a town or dungeon.

For Rosa, equip her with the Holy Arrows, the CrossBow and the Plumed Hat for increased attack and defense. Remember that arrows are finite, and that you will have to get more in order to Rosa to use her physical attack. Also, the arrows go in her right hand while the bow goes in her left.

At the armor shop, buy an Iron Bangle. You'll need it for later.

You'll also meet Namingway in the armor shop.

From Kaipo, use the shoals to get east of Damcyan. By the way, there is a chance to face eight Goblins at once in the desert to get the Goblin summon for Rydia, though you do not need it right away. There will be another spot to get it later in the game.

Taking the shoals east of Damcyan on the hovercraft will take you to a mountain with a path in it. Enter that path.

Mt. Hobs

Map (by FlyingArmor)

When you enter Mt. Hobs, you will see the path frozen over. At Rydia's behest, Rydia tries to cast Fire, but cannot because she hates fire after how it burned down Mist. Rosa tells Rydia to try to be brave, and eventually, Rydia manages to cast fire and thaw out the path. As a result, Rydia learns Fire and is able to cast Black magic with the Black command in battle.

The Gargoyles are a standard flying enemy. If Edward confuses one with his harp, they will cast Tornado on each other and nearly kill themselves with their own weakness. Also, the Gargoyles are also weak to Rosa's arrows and other projectiles.

Rosa can cast White magic. Prayer has a random chance of casting Cure on all party members, which is terribly weak since it is cast on multiple party members. The Aim command guarantees Rosa to hit an enemy with 100% accuracy, which makes Aim better than the Fight command by a long shot.

THE OWENS TURNS ON THE NEW DAY

We all knew it would happen.

HCBailly plays Final Fantasy IV (Super Famicom) - Part 10 of 70

asdf

Map (by FlyingArmor)

Domovoi (also known as the Imp Captain in the Western version) is very easy to take out and are usually surrounded by Goblins.

The Lamia Harp is the only weapon you can get for Edward in the entire game. Yeah, he won't be around for long. It has double the attack power of the harp he came into the party with, and can Confuse enemies.

Midway through the cave, you can find a Save Room. One of the treasures inside is the Emergency Exit, which allows you to cast Exit and instantly leave a dungeon.

The Yellow Jelly is weak to Lightning, which more than makes up for the fact that they are immune to physical attacks.

When you reach a huge circular chasm, you'll finally be in the Antlion's lair. The Antlion is usually tame, but when Edward takes the Light of the Desert, the Antlion suddenly tries to attack him. This starts a boss battle.

The Antlion will counter-attack in response to counter attacks. Have Rydia cast Chocobo every turn and have Edward use Hide, since Edward will be cut to ribbons here. Cecil will still have to use his physical attacks, but Rydia will be able to heal the party whenever necessary.

After the battle, you'll finally have the Light of the Desert, but Edward will wonder why the Antlion has suddenly become aggressive. Cecil mentions that monsters have become more numerous as of late, and that formerly tame animals have started to attack humans. After this, it's time to head back to Kaipo.

Enjoy seeing what happens when you Confuse a Mini Mage!

HCBailly plays Final Fantasy IV (Super Famicom) - Part 9 of 70

We've made it to Damcyan, but our trip has now turned into tragedy.

Overworld Map (by Rick Bruns)

Map (by FlyingArmor)

Detailed Map (by KeyBlade999)

After Anna dies, Tellah promises to avenge Anna's death. Cecil asks Tellah to reconsider doing it alone, but Tellah shoves him out of the way, saying he does not need his help and that he will kill Golbez on his own. He then leaves the party.

Meanwhile, Rydia tells Edward to be a man as she too has lost loved ones to King Baron's forces. Edward says that if this is the case, he is a weakling and he should just stay with Anna forever. Cecil slaps some sense into him, saying it would not make Anna happy and that they need his help with the Antlion and the Light of the Desert. Edward, feeling one should not lose the one they love, agrees to help after explaining the origin of the Light of the Desert: the secretions of the Antlion when it lays its eggs. He will tell you that the cave is to the east, but you must cross a shallow stream to get there.

Edward will then tell you about a Hovercraft in Damcyan that can cross the shallows as well as the shoals back to Kaipo. He then joins your party. Everyone will leave, then Edgar says goodbye to Anna, whose body disappears.

Back on the world map, you'll be on the Hovercraft. However, consider going back to the castle. From here, head to the east at the entrance after going one tile south and walk around the castle. You'll find a treasure room. Talk to the guard, who will tell you not to let the enemy get the treasure, and press the switch near him when he disappears. This opens a doorway nearby. Go inside and feel your way to the west to get a Crossbow, a Plumed Hat and a Ruby Ring.

If you have the Iron Bangle, give it to Edward, and give him the Leather Armor if you have it. Also, put him on the back row.

Downstairs in the treasure room is six more chests. Inside are an Antidote, a Potion, Holy Arrows in a jar, an Ether, a Phoenix Down, a Golden Needle, Holy Arrows in another jar, Iron Arrows in a third jar, and Eye Drops.

Before you go, head back to the third floor of the castle and go to the left to use the Healing Pot to restore your HP and status. The two people near the pot will tell you about the shallows by the west shore that will allow you to head to Kaipo, as well as the town of Fabul, which has been blocked by a thick layer of ice from frozen winds in Mt. Hobs.

If you go to the right on this floor, you'll find another jar that will restore your MP.

Now is the time to sell your excess equipment. Go to Kaipo. Head east from Damcyan and you will see the shallows, which are indicated by the rocks. Ride over those, and you'll be able to make it back to Kaipo. Make sure to keep the Holy Arrows, Crossbow, a Plumed Hat and both Ruby Rings in addition to all the battle items such as the Copper Hourglasses, Antarctic Wind and Bomb Fragments.

From Damcyan, take the shallows to the north and go south to the Antlion Cave.

Antlion Cave

Map (by FlyingArmor)

The Spider Web casts Slow on enemies when used in battle.

The Lacy is a pretty standard enemy. The Adamantium is weak to ice, and the Basilisk can petrify your party members.

Edward's Sing ability can only be used if he has a Harp in his weapon slot. Medicine uses one of your Potions and splits the effects between all the party members. Hide allows Edward to leave the battle for a turn and not take damage. If he has less than 25% of his health, Edward will automatically Hide so he doesn't get killed. Also, Edward's Harp can randomly put an enemy to sleep if the attack connects.

HCBailly plays Final Fantasy IV (Super Famicom) - Part 8 of 70

In this episode, we face an octopus and make our way to Damcyan.

Overworld Map (by Rick Bruns)

Map (by FlyingArmor)

Just before you leave the Underground Channel, Tellah will tell you that you are about to re-enter the overworld and that you can use a Tent before you go into the cave to the north in case you need to heal up. Tents heal up to 1000 HP and 100 MP, so while they are good now, they won't be much good later on.

Waterfall

Waterfall Map (by FlyingArmor)

Underground Lake Map (by FlyingArmor)

When you enter the waterfall, Tellah will tell you that the multi-tentacled monster that blocks the path is down below. You'll fall into the waterfall, then reach an underground lake area.

Alligators are weak to ice, and can attack twice per round.

The Hades Helmet and the Hades Gauntlet are for Cecil, so equip those on him to give him some slightly better defense. Sames with the Hades Armor.

The Hermes Shoes will cast Haste on whoever uses it as an item in battle, letting them become faster in battle and get more attacks in per round.

You'll eventually come across the tentacles at the end of this area. Heal up, then take it on.

To beat Octomammoth, have Cecil attack, Rydia cast Chocobo and Tellah cast Bolt. Chocobo Kick will be a bit stronger choice for Rydia, and Octomammoth will also be weak to the Darkness elemental from Cecil's Dark Sword. If you need to heal, have Tellah do it with Cure 2.

After a while, Tella will mention that the Octommamoth is slowing down. Keep attacking it so that it loses more and more of its tentacles, and it will eventually go down. You'll be able to proceed to Damcyan past the waterfall.

Damcyan

Map (by FlyingArmor)

Detailed Map (by KeyBlade999)

From here, you'll easily be able to make it to Damcyan, but the Red Wings will show up in a Mode 7 sequence and carpet bomb the whole place. Head into the castle. Talk to the people there, and you will find out the crystal has been stolen. You'll be able to get a Tent on the second floor and a healing pot on the third. When you get to the third floor, however, Anna will be among the wounded. Tellah will notice this, then someone shows up. Tellah immediately attacks the guy, recognizing him as the bard that Anna ran off with, and blames him for Anna being put in danger.

This leads to an automatically-controlled battle between Tellah and the bard. This is where the legendary "You spoony bard!" line comes from, and even in later version and translations of the game, the line is so legendary that it has been kept in every version since the original Western release. I mean, why would you remove it?

Anna will tell them both to stop fighting, and it is revealed that Gilbert (originally known as Edward; I will refer to him by that name from here on out), the bard, is really the Prince of Damcyan and that he came to Kaipo as a bard to conceal his identity. After Anna says that she loves Edward, Edward will mention that Golbez controls the Red Wings. Cecil, knowing nothing about Golbez, asks about him. We find out that Golbez is clad in black and unbelievably powerful, and that the castle was bombed so that King Baron could steal their crystal. Edward also reveals that his parents are both dead from the attack and that Anna shielded him from arrows that were shot at the people. Tellah realizes his mistake, but he realizes it too late as Anna dies in Edward and Tellah.

HCBailly plays Final Fantasy IV (Super Famicom) - Part 7 of 70

Our trek through the underground passage continues!

Map (by FlyingArmor)

After some exploring, you'll find a room with eight columns set up in a circle with a symbol in the center. This is a save point, and when you reach it, Cecil, Rydia and Tellah will rest in the center for the night so the mystic rune will create a force field that monsters cannot enter. Thankfully, the party will heal as they rest for the knight.

As Rydia sleeps, Cecil and Tellah talk. They talk about the potential that Rydia has to become a great summoner, then Tella talks about his only daughter Anna. Cecil mentions the Light of the Desert, and Tellah tells Cecil about the Antlion, and how you will have to beat it to get the Light of the Desert to save Anna as well as Rosa. Tellah then says he has a horrible feeling about Damcyan, then the party rests for the night.

If you stand on the symbol, you can go to the menu and save your game outside of the World Map. Unfortunately, this is the only way you can do it. (In the Super Nintendo version, the symbol was a circle with an S inside it; this was a magical rune outside of the Western Super NES version.)

Past the save area, you can get an IceRod. Hand this to Rydia, and have her use it as an item in battle to cast a weaker version of Ice that is good for killing enemies one at a time. (Spells get weaker when they are cast on multiple enemies, and the same can be said for cure spells on multiple allies.)

In the second basement floor, there is a hidden passage to the west of the stairs as well to the west between the chest containing the Potion and the stairs leading back up. Both of them lead north and to the east, where you can find a Plumed Hat that you can equip on Rydia. (In the Western Super Nintendo version, this hidden tunnel was revealed; in every other version, it remains hidden and you have to find it through dumb luck.)

The Mini Mages have a high magic defense, while the Sahagens are weak to lightning. You're better off using Bolt on one Sahagen at a time.

It should be noted for expert players that if you confuse a Mini Mage, they will cast Doom on your party in an attempt to instantly kill them. There are a few enemies that do that, and the Mini Mages are one of them.

The Marshmallows cannot be harmed with physical weapons, so have Tellah hit them with Fire.

The Organitoads are more or less the same as the Gigantoads.

The Antarctic Wind is much like the Bomb Fragment, except it casts Ice.

The Shadow Blade is a sword for Cecil. Be sure to equip it on him to give him a big attack boost.

HCBailly plays Final Fantasy IV (Super Famicom) - Part 6 of 70

Our journey takes us into an underground cave where we meet a wise old sage with magic that will greatly help our adventure.

Overworld Map (by Rick Bruns)

Underground Waterway/Underground Channel

Map (by FlyingArmor)

This place will be the first to contain enemies with elemental weaknesses such as weakness to fire, ice and lightning. As a rule of thumb, toads are weak to ice, fish are weak to lightning and undead enemies are weak to fire. You'll get fire attacks later on.

Fly Killers and Fang Shells are both weak to lightning. Rydia won't be able to take down multiple enemies with Bolt, so use Cecil's Dark Wave when facing multiple enemies.

The LuckyMallet (also known as just the Mallet) cures the Mini status. Enemies can have random item drops throughout the game, and you just might get one in this area from a Fang Shell.

The Gigantoads are all weak to ice, but don't rule out using Dark Wave, either. These enemies can cast Toad on your party and turn party members into toads, but MaidenKisses can cure the Toad status.

You'll eventually run into an old man. This old man is the Sage Tellah, and will ask Cecil for help. He will tell you that his daughter Anna was tricked by a bard and went off to Damcyan, and he senses great evil there. He also tells you there is a powerful monster ahead, but he cannot beat it without your help. After he realizes Cecil is a dark knight and that Rydia is a summoner, he joins the party.

Tellah is a powerful sage, and he has a few magic spells. He is a very high level, and he will barely get any stronger than he actually is. Move him to the back row to make up for his low defense, and equip a LeatherHat on him. One of his spells is Cure 2. Utilize that if you need to heal up badly.

The Bomb Fragment casts Fire on all enemies when used as an item in battle. Save these for later; they'll be put to better use then.

Equip the Iron Bangle on Tellah to give him even more defense, since Rydia already has some equipped and Cecil cannot equip them at all.

The big waterfall near Tellah contains a hidden room. If you walk into it, you'll find a Dry Ether, an X-Potion and a Phoenix Down. Those two items are much better versions of the Ether and the Potion, respectively. Save these for later; you won't find these again until much later in the game.

Kill the Sea Pots before they run away. Hitting it with Bolt from Tellah will take it down. Thankfully, you can pass your turn over to Tellah by pressing Right and selecting Defend while choosing a command for a character. If you press Left instead of right, you'll be able to access the Change command, which changes the positions of the front and back rows in battle.

Tellah's "Remember" command is only in the Super Famicom version, and it allows him to cast a random spell that he once knew that he is not able to access normally. (This was removed in the Super Nintendo version in the West.)

HCBailly plays Final Fantasy IV (Super Famicom) - Part 5 of 70

asdf

Kaipo

Overworld Map (by Rick Bruns)

Map (by FlyingArmor)

Detailed map (by KeyBlade999)

After the battle, the girl will blame herself for everything that has happened after Cecil saved her, but Cecil says he should be the one apologizing and that what he did should not be forgotten. However, the girl does understand that Cecil wants to protect despite the fact that Cecil accidentally killed her mother when he and Kain defeated the Mist Dragon. The girl introduces herself as Rydia, then officially becomes part of the party. 

The next party, Rydia is well again. Rydia is a Summoner, but she does not have much in the way of offense.

The old women at the east side of the inn will tell you about the Sage Tellah and his daughter Anna, and how Anna suddenly ran away from home. Upstairs at the inn is the bar as well as a rather useless message north of the stairs (in the J2e translation, it is for a Kaipo Micro Brew). Here, you will learn about Fabul, which is east of Damcyan, and how one must take the Underwater Channel to pass through. Unfortunately, a strange man has blocked the way for a scholar sitting at a nearby table. You'll also learn that only the royal family can enter Antlion's cave east of Damcyan, and that if ordinary folks were allowed in, all the gems would cause business to boom.

West of the Inn is the Armor Shop. Purchase a Leather Hat for later. If you removed Kain's equipment before heading to Mist, you can get some extra money, but not too much. To equip things, just go to the menu and select Equip, then you can change your weapons, armors and accessories on all the characters from there.

Asking about town will tell you about eight ferocious sea snakes that guard the exit of the Underwater Channel, and that Anna, Sage Tellah's daughter, has fallen in love with a wandering bard. Unfortunately, Tellah would not allow the relationship, so they ran away from Kaipo. You'll also learn that a woman from Baron stumbled into town and was taken to a neighbor's house to recover. Damcyan Castle will be to north, and the prince allegedly has a voice of an angel.

Another villager will recommend that you put Rydia in the back row. To do that, go to the menu, then choose Form. Select Rydia, then move her to either the second or fourth slots in the party. The first, third and fifth slots will all be in the front row. If you choose Change, you will switch the positions around so that first, third and fifth are in the back while second and fourth are in the front. By putting Rydia in the back, she will take less damage, which is a good thing since she does not have a lot of HP.

North of the inn is a dancer, and if you talk to her, she does a dance that involves synchronized swimming.

One of the pots north of the Weapon Shop contains an Ether.

In the house north of the weapon shop, you will find out that a woman collapsed in the village and was calling out for Cecil. Going north here will reveal that this woman is Rosa, who unfortunately has a case of desert fever. To cure her, you must find the "Light of the Desert," an elusive gem found only in the Antlion's lair. In other words, you're going to have to head east of Damcyan and enter the cave with Damcyan royalty after getting past sea snakes and an old man to get to Damcyan in the first place...but how?

If you interact with the bookcase near the old man in the north end of that house, you'll learn that the Light of the Desert is the only cure for desert fever.

Before you head onward, battle enemies in the desert near Kaipo and bring Rydia to Level 5, so she can learn a Lightning-based spell. You'll need it for the Underwater Channel. Having Rydia use the Rod as in item will alolow her to do more damage than she normally would, especially since she is in the back. To do that, go to the Item list, press Up, then press A twice on the rod and target the enemy you want to use it as an item against. Be sure to heal at the inn if you need to.

As you power Rydia up to Level 5, she will learn Ice and Cure before learning Bolt.

Sand Sahags are weak to Ice. Hopefully Rydia will have learned it by then, even though she will only have so many MP. Sand Worms are nothing special, so attack them however you want.

The path to the Underwater Channel is northeast of Kaipo.

HCBailly plays Final Fantasy IV (Super Famicom) - Part 4 of 70

Our journey takes us to the village of Mist, but it soon becomes apparent that the King is not only shadier than ever, but completely corrupt.

Overworld Map (by Rick Bruns)

Map (by FlyingArmor)

The Sword Rat will counter physical attacks in case you do not kill it in one shot.

When you near the end of the cave, the mystery voice will tell you to leave now. This is your chance to make sure that Cecil and Kain are all healed up, as a big battle is approaching.

When you approach the stairs, the voice will identify Cecil, and declare that no harm will come if he and Kain turn back. When the voice asks if you still insist on proceeding, select Yes with the A button. A fog will surround Cecil and Kain, leading to the first boss battle of the game.

The first boss of the game is the MistDragon. Have Cecil use normal attacks and use Kain's jump at every opportunity. When the MistDragon turns into mist, do not attack; otherwise, you will miss, and the MistDragon will counter with Cold Mist, which will hurt both Cecil and Kain (unless Kain is somehow in mid-air during this attack). Wait for the MistDragon to turn back into the original dragon form before attacking again, and use the wait as an opportunity to heal Cecil and Kain back up. Thankfully, when all this happens for the first time, the game hints at when the MistDragon is turning into fog and when the MistDragon changes back, and you can figure out when to attack and not attack. If you attack early enough before the MistDragon is about to change back, you can get three Jump attacks in with Kain.

Eventually, you will take the MistDragon down, and you can go up the stairs and head east to Mist. Be sure to save before you enter so you don't have to worry about facing the first boss again (and be sure to save after beating a boss, period).

Mist

Map (by FlyingArmor)

Detailed map (by KeyBlade999)

When you enter the village of Mist, the Bomb Ring will glow, and a bunch of Bombs will surround the village before tearing the village apart. Cecil and Kain will find out too late that they were sent here by King Baron to destroy the town for the King's nefarious purposes. Talk about an all-time low!

Cecil and Kain find a little girl with green hair who is crying due to her mother being dead. She mentions that her mother's dragon died, and with that, so did she. Kain realizes that this girl's mother is a summoner, and when Cecil comes to the realization that killing the MistDragon kiled the girl's mother and that King Baron sent them into the town to kill all the summoners, Cecil and Kain have no choice to but to kill the girl as well under the king's orders; lest they be accused of treason. Cecil questions these orders, but Kain is still loyal to King Baron. Cecil refuses to follow King Baron after all of this, and renounces his loyalties to Baron right then and there. Kain, knowing that Cecil would say this, joins him in rebellion, as he could never perform such a lowly deed as a Dragon Knight no matter how much he owes King Baron. He proposes enlisting the help of other nations by letting them know about Baron's lust for power, and that they also go back to Baron and save Rosa.

Cecil thanks him, even though Kain tells him he is not doing this particularly for him. Kain then mentions that they must leave Mist, as they will not be safe her, and asks what they should do with the girl. Cecil says that she has to go with them, but the girl fights back and takes her anger out on Cecil and Kain for killing her mother and destroying the town when Kain tries to force her to come with them. After she summons Titan and nearly wipes Cecil and Kain out, the path leading to Mist from the cave to the west is blocked off.

When Cecil comes to, Kain is nowhere to be found, but the girl is still nearby and alive, albeit unconscious. When you return to the world map, there will be no way to walk back to Mist, the Cave or Mist or Baron. The only to go back is to go forward.

Head north and east to the village near the desert oasis, and make sure to save before going in.

Kaipo

Map (by FlyingArmor)

Detailed map (by KeyBlade999)

Cecil will head to the inn, and the innkeeper will tell Cecil to take the girl to the room and not worry about paying. When Cecil places the girl in the bed, she will come to, but will not cooperate with him. Cecil then rests in another bed, then night will fall. A General of Baron will show up with three soldiers, and demand that he turn the girl over so that he will forgive his treachery as it has been deemed dangerous for the people of Mist to even exist. Cecil refuses, and this starts a battle.

For this battle, take out at least two Soldiers before taking out the General for a ton of experience points tat will make it easier to level up and get stronger. If you take out all three Soldiers before fighting the General, the General will run away. If the General goes before the Soldiers do, the remaining Soldiers will bumble around due to lack of leadership. 

HCBailly plays Final Fantasy IV (Super Famicom) - Part 3 of 70

asdf

Overworld Map (by Rick Bruns)

Town of Baron

Before heading anywhere, go to the town areas surrounding Baron Castle to go to town.

Map (by FlyingArmor)

Detailed Map (by KeyBlade999)

The tool shop will be to the left of the town entrance. It's the building with a picture of a pot on it. Here, you will want to buy . You can buy items either one at a time, or you can buy them in bulk. Get three MaidensKisses (which cure Frog), three Eye Drops (which cure Blind) and five Antidotes (which cure Posion).

Talking around will tell you that the Village of Mist is beyond the cave to the northwest. The people at the inn will fear you, and the guy running the bar will just give you a free drink (which isn't part of your inventory). The inn has a sign saying "INN" on it.

The pot near the inn contains a free Potion (which will recover some HP, or hit points). There is a pot inside the inn between the beds and the front desk that also contain a Potion. To check the pots for Potions, just walk up to them and press A as if you were talking to another person. You'll get a message saying you found the Potion. Be sure to try this out in other areas throughout the game.

If you look at the swords on the wall that block the path to the treasure chests in the inn, you'll open a secret door in the wall. The chests contain an Eye Drop, a Tent and a Dwarf Bread. The Dwarf Bread zooms out and shows you a little more of what is around your current position in the overworld map.

2:11 - I forgot all about these commercials. Fun fact: some people told me I looked like lead singer Eric Violette back in the day. They weren't wrong, either.

There is another potion in the pot near the armor shop, which is the building with the pictures of the sword and the shield. Sadly, that store is locked.

Believe it or not, the town of Baron is different in the Super Famicom version compared to the Western version for Super Nintendo. The training room, which is below the Devil's Road in Japan, is in its own separate area in the town for the West. (This change was undone in the PlayStation 1 version worldwide.)

The Devil's Road (also known as the Serpent's Road) won't be working when you enter it. Had it been working, it would have instantly taken you to Mysidia, and if you use it, you will find out it is deactivated on the other side for obvious reasons. There will be a training area downstairs, and you can go down there to learn the controls for the battle system. Namingway will also be there at the side of the room, and if you talk to him, you can change the name of any of your current party members.

The door at the west end near the stairs is locked. Up the stairs is another house, and this is where Cid's daughter lives. Cid will be sleeping in the bed, but he will talk in his sleep about how he finished the new model engine if you talk to him.

One of the houses belongs to Rosa's mother. If you check the shelves, you can find an Ether. There will also be a MaidensKiss in a pot. Rosa's mother will be concerned about what you are doing, and pleads with you not to get Rosa involved in anything terrible.

There is a woman in a red dress on the north side, and if you talk to her, she takes her red dress off and dances. (The dress stays on in the Western version due to the rampant censorship.) You can walk into the water and go down the waterfalls afterwards. At the end, you can find a Tent and a Copper Hourglass that can cast Stop on all enemies in battle for a short time, and there are other version of the Hourglass that work for even longer. Hold on to them, as they can come in handy later.

The old woman standing in the grass near the trees leading to the eastern exit tells you that there is an underground waterway leading into the castle to the west of town. In case you still haven't interacted with that door, it's locked right now.

There is a hidden passage in the trees on the northern edge of the village, and if you find it and follow it, you'll be in some tall grass. You can find two Golden Needles and a Phoenix Down in the grass. The Golden Needles cure Stone (or Petrification), and the Phoenix Down revives an ally who has lost all their HP.

To the west is a forest with a Chcoobo Forest. 

Chocobo Forest Map (by FlyingArmor)

You can find Gysahl Greens in the tall grass, and if you use them in the northern-most part of the Chocobo Field, you can summon a Fat Chocobo who can store some of your items. You only have so much inventory space, so keeping your items with the Fat Chocobo is a good habit to get into. Be sure to get more Gysahl's Vegetables to summon the Fat Chocobo and get items in and out whenever you need to.

Talking to a white Chocobo will refill your HP, while talking to a yellow Chocobo will allow you to ride it. You'll be able to move a lot faster on a Chocobo and avoid monsters - which are encountered at random - as you make your way to the cave to the northwest. You won't be able to go into the cave with the Chocobo, however, so you will have to press A to dismount. The Chocobo will run away and head back to the forest, and you'll be on foot again.

Cave of Mist

Map (by FlyingArmor)

The monsters in the Cave of Mist can also be encountered on the overworld near Baron.

In battle, you can attack, cast magic, perform special abilities that can heal allies or do some good damage to enemies. and use items.

Dark Wave allows enemies to do damage to all on-screen enemies in exchange for a little bit of his HP. The number of HP that is taken off Cecil is equal to 1/8 of Cecil's maximum HP (basically, take his maximum HP and divide by 8, and you'll see how much if takes off). Jump allows Kain to jump into the air for a little while and hit the enemy you pick for some major damage some time later. While he is in the air, attacks cannot affect him and he cannot be targeted by monsters until he comes back down.

The Goblins are pretty vanilla enemies and can be easily wiped out with Dark Wave whenever necessary. The Insectus can be wiped out in one shot. The Flying Eye are weak to Kain's spear, as are all flying enemies in this game. Flying enemies are also weak to projectile weapons, but you can use spears against them to get the same effect.

When you get to the bridge, a voice will tell you to turn back.

HCBailly plays Final Fantasy IV (Super Famicom) - Part 2 of 70

And now...our adventure begins!

Baron Castle Map (by FlyingArmor)

Detailed Baron Castle Map (by KeyBlade999)

To talk to people, walk up to them, face them and press A. Press A to go through the conversation that results.

The two men standing next to the door leading to the path to the throne will tell you not to get ideas if you value your life, and acknowledge that people are saying things about King Baron. If you try to enter the throne room again, the guard will tell you that King Baron is angry at you and will refuse to speak to you until you deliver the Bomb Ring to Mist.

To the west of the door leading up to the small room leading to the throne are two soldiers you can talk to, and to the east are two soldiers and Kain. If you talk to Kain, he will tell Cecil not to apologize as he defended him out of his own free will. Cecil goes on to talk about his mission as well as having learned the art of the Dark Sword as ordered by King Baron. He goes on to say he should be using his skills to defend Baron, not harming innocent people. Cecil wants to clear his conscience, but Kain tells him not to be so hard on himself, as the King has a good reason for his actions, that he raised him and Cecil as his own sons and would never do anything less than honorable. Cecil envies Kain's faith in King Baron, saying that he spoke of Kain's father, who had the same unwavering loyalty. Kain says that his father was also a Dragon Knight, and had he mastered the art of the Dark Sword as King Baron commanded, he would have advanced up the ranks like Cecil did. However, he felt it was his duty to honor his father and follow in his path. Sadly, his father died while he was young, and sometimes he wishes his father could see him today and hopefully be proud of him. Kain says he often has moments of quiet reflection when he can feel his spirit within him, guiding him. He then apologizes to Cecil for rambling, and tells Cecil he should be worrying more about tomorrow. After seeing tomorrow's mission as a bit of a competition, Kain says they must get an early start, and tells Cecil to get some rest.

One of the two soldiers sitting north of Kain will tell you that Mist is northwest of Baron, and is said to always be enshrouded in a deep fog. The other one says that the Bomb Ring is guaranteed to be delivered to Mist is Kain and Cecil team up.

Your next act is to head to your quarters and sleep there to advance the plot, but you are free to talk to more people. To the south, there are two stairways leading down. The west stairway leads to the Black Magic Clasroom, while the east stairway leads to the White Magic Classroom. One of the Black Magicians will tell you that some monsters are immune to Fire, Thunder and/or Ice Magic, and that there used to be magic stronger than that at one time. One of the White Magicians in the White Magician Classroom will tell you that Rosa became a White Magician so she could help you, and asks you not to worry her, while another notices that King Baron is as energetic as ever while admitting that something is strange about him. A third one will tell you that there are three levels of White Magic, such as Cure, Cure 2 and Cure 3.

There is a soldier near a wall blocking some chests, and gives you permission to hit the switch and take the things inside for your mission to Mist. To open the way to the treasure, go up to the switch behind him, look at it and press A to uncover a hidden door leading to the treasure. Inside the nearby treasure chest are 480 Gil (Gil is the currency for this game), an Ether and a Tent. An Ether will refill some MP (Magic Points), while a Tent can be used in the overworld to heal the entire part for one use only.

There is a stairway leading up to the east from there. Go further east down the next flight of stairs. You can press the switch to open a door leading to more treasure, but the soldier guarding it is situated in such a way that you won't be able to go over there. Just go through the door to the south. The two guys outside will mention Cid as well as working them to the bone to maintain the airships. Going north from here leads to a tower that is currently off-limits.

Go all the way back. If you leave through the south, you won't be able to leave the castle, and you won't learn anything of importance. Instead go west, take the stairs, go down the next flight of stairs and you'll eventually be met by Rosa, who is grateful that Cecil is all right. Cecil talks about his mission in Mysidia, then Rosa tells Cecil she will come to his room later before leaving. From here, you have control of Cecil again.

Go south. To the west is the dungeon. You can talk to the magicians from Mysidia who did resist and got locked up in Baron as a result, and you can talk to them through the bars. They don't tell you anything other than to return the Water Crystal to Mysidia and that the crystal is not just an ordinary crystal.

Leave the dungeon area, then go north. You will be met by Cid, who is in the northeast corner. He will meet up with Cecil, chew him out for worrying his daughter Rosa, then asks how his airships are doing before Cecil tells Cid about what is going on. Cid will be shocked at Cecil's sudden demotion and wonder what is going on with King Baron, saying that he wants a new model of airship. Cid, on the other hand, does not want to turn his airships into war machines. He also says that the townsfolk of Baron are confused about what has been going on as of late. He then returns home, and you have control of Cecil again.

There will be two doors to the north. The one on the left leads to a tower, while the one on the right is the soldiers' quarters. Some soldiers will be sleeping or healing up, while others will be sitting at a table trying to forget what happened at Mysidia and regretting what they have recently done. There are stairs leading upwards, but we aren't going up them just yet.

The tower leads to Cecil's bedroom. Talk to the maid blocking the path to the third floor, and she will tell you she changed the sheets before wishing you a good night. Walk into the bed, and Cecil will sleep, but not before wondering why King Baron is acting like he is after having been a knight and man of valor and kindness for so long. He also wonders if taking the Water Crystal from Mysidia by force was necessary, and feels that he and his men have sunk to a new low, even under orders. Rosa then shows up in Cecil's bedroom. She knows about Cecil's mission to deliver the Bomb Ring to the village of Mist now, and mentions that Cecil has been acting strange since he came back. Cecil tries to shrug it off, but then tells Rosa about the Red Wings' mission in Mysidia and how he feels he is turning almost as evil as his dark armor. Rosa tells Cecil he is not like that, but Cecil feels like a spineless pawn of the King. Rosa says that this is not like Cecil, and says the Cecil she knows would not whimper like this. She gets worried that something will happen to Cecil tomorrow on the way to Mist, but Cecil tells Rosa that Kain will be with him. Rosa tells Cecil to be careful, then she leaves. Cecil wonders what to do after this, then the screen fades to black.

The next morning, Cecil automatically makes his way to the main hallway leading out of the castle, meeting Kain on the way. Kain joins Cecil's party, then the two of them leave Baron Castle. After this, you see a recap of the prologue, complete with slow moving text, before regaining control in the overworld.

HCBailly plays Final Fantasy IV (Super Famicom) - Part 1 of 70

Time for a prologue for something that has been a long time coming.

This version is the Japanese version with an English translation by J2e Translations for the 10th anniversary for the game. The original version is a lot harder and has a lot of differences between it and the Western version, which had easier enemies, a heavily censored and less well-translated script, removed certain spells and abilities, and required more level grinding to learn what spells there were.

The translation here corrects everything from the North American version, and has a more literal translation with better plot and character development compared to said version.

Baron Castle

Baron Castle map (by FlyingArmor)

Detailed Baron Castle Map (by KeyBlade999)

The story begins with five airships flying across the world. In one of them, a captain is in command. The fleet of ships is about to arrive at Baron. The captain, whose name is Cecil, looks back at the mission that he and his soldiers have just accomplished: taking a magical crystal from innocent people and even killing some of them in the process. He is not the only to have remorse for his actions, as one of the soldiers also shows guilt for what has happened. He says that the Red Wings earned their position through valor and bravery, and that looting innocent people is an act of cowardice. Cecil says that is enough, but the soldier asks why they are going as far as pillaging a town of magicians who do not even resist. Cecil says they are doing their duty to the King of Baron, who says that possessing the Crystal is absolutely necessary and that the town of Mysidia knew too much about the secrets of the crystal, making them a threat to Baron's sovereignty. He also says that the King's orders are absolute.

All of a sudden, monsters attack the ship, and the ship goes into battle stations. Cecil makes quick work of the monsters that he fights, Thankfully, everyone survives, and one of the soldiers mentions that the monsters are becoming more numerous and more aggressive.

The fleet finally lands in Baron. Cecil is welcomed by Beigan, the Captain of the Guards. Cecil tells Beigan that the Mysidians did not resist at all as the Red Wings took their crystal. Beigan escorts Cecil to the King of Baron's throne room. Before they enter, Beigan heads in first and tells the king that Cecil has developed a distrust towards the throne. King Baron thanks Beigan for giving him a heads-up on this, then asks him to bring in Cecil as the crystal is all matters. Beigan gives Cecil permission to enter the throne room, then the King asks for the crystal. Cecil hands the Water Crystal off to the king, then Beigan notices that the crystal is genuine. King Baron talks about how the Water Crystal glimmers like light shining on the depths of the sea. He gives Cecil permission to leave, but Cecil asks the king why he needs the crystals and why the Mysidians did not resist even though they were becoming a threat. He then says that the Red Wings do not understand why innocent bystanders had to die and that some have even wondered if his actions are altogether honorable. This enrages the king to the point that he strips him of command of the Red Wings, even though he took him in and raised him like a son. The king then orders him to eliminate the Phantom Beasts that haunt the upper valley after his attendants keep Cecil from getting too close. Kain (whose name is spelled as "Cain" in the translation) shows up and defends Cecil, but the king tells Kain to go to the upper valleys with him if he is so worried about Cecil. The King then hands Cecil a Bomb Ring, then the attendants push Cecil and Kain out of the throne room.

Outside the throne room, Cecil apologizes to Kain for getting him mixed up in everything, and Kain is hopeful that if Cecil defeats the Phantom Beasts, the King will surely forgive him and reinstate him as Commander of the Red Wings. He then tells Cecil to rest while he takes care of all the preparations.

[YTP] Paula Peen Consumes Family Members on the FooF Network

PAULA ANN HAVE YOU LOST YOUR DAMN MIND

I seriously don't know what else to put here.

Next intermission will be more of THE OWENS, hopefully.

Kikoskia plays Daikatana - Part 10 of 10

We finally come face-to-face with Kage Mishima, but this story doesn't exactly have a happy ending...

Navy Base and Mishima's Tower Map (by StarFighters76)

By playing around with the dragon statues (after taking out all of the enemies, of course), you'll find out that getting all the dragon statues to face the same direction opens a door, and the door you open depends on the direction you have all four dragon statues facing.

The Novabeam is the most powerful gun in the game.

Having the dragons face east unlocks the door to the east, which leads to a samurai enemy who is really fast and really powerful. Stand in front of the stairs leading up to this room, face east and keep swinging the Daikatana to beat him, and you'll get a Novabeam cartridge as well as a green Capsule if you need it.

Having the dragons face north unlocks the door to the north, which is another mini-boss that happens to be a gray samurai who can fight with a ranged weapon. After going almost all the way north from the stairs, stand there, face north and keep slashing. Despite your now reversed controls, you'll get another Novabeam cartridge as well as a green Capsule, should you need it.

Having the dragons face west unlocks the door to the west. You'll have another samurai battle. Stand near the lantern and fight off the samurai with the Daikatana, and watch out for his dashing slash. If you can pin the samurai to the western wall, you'll have an advantage. Winning here will give you a green Armor for 200 AP and a green Capsule.

Having the dragons face south unlocks the door to the south near the cell you came out of. You'll face one more samurai, and this time the room gets dark. Go just a little bit to the north and face east, and keep striking. When the samurai here dies, you'll get a green Capsule and an Energy Water.

After beating all four of these samurai, you can now go to the double doors in the center of the maze, which will now be open. Upstairs, you'll find more Novabeam ammo and another Energy Water. Save your game, grab the Energy Water, then go up the stairs and go north. You'll face a giant samurai, but it gets worse: the walls close in on you. If you can somehow corner the samurai, you'll be able to get more hits in as long as you can stay away from its furious sword slashes. Your max HP will go up to 400 when you win this battle. Save your game.

From here, you'll have to carefully jump from one moving platform to another. Be on the edge of the platform when you jump, and when you make it to the platform. keep holding the direction you want to go to ensure that you stay on the platform you want to be on. This will take a little bit of trial and error to keep from falling into the pits below and losing a lot of health. For the second set, you will want to get on the stationary platform in the center to make your job easier.

You'll then find more Novabeam ammunition as well as a green Capsule in case you lost a ton of health during all this platforming. Take the health and save your game; you don't want to do all that platforming again.

In the room to the north, you'll finally fight Kage Mishima. Since you cannot use the Daikatana in this battle due to how the fabric of time will be wrecked if both Daikatanas clash, you'll have to use another weapon here

Equip the Meta-Masers, keep your distance, and watch out for the three-way shots that Kage Mishima's glowing orange balls fire. Throw the Meta-Masers so that they land right next to Kage Mishima and hit him before he teleports to another side of the room.

After you do enough damage to Kage, he will turn into a giant samurai after absorbing the Daikatana's power. Usagi shows up and not only restores your HP, but increases your maximum HP to 450 as the power of Hiro's Daikatana fills Hiro's body.

Save your game and switch to the Novabeam. Stay on the move and shoot at Kage with it whenever you can as you avoid the projectiles that Kage produces. Sometimes Kage will send one straight at you; other times they will come out from the left and right sides of the room, althought not on both the left and right sides of Hiro.

When you beat Kage again, your HP will be restored and your maximum HP will go up to 500. The Daikatana will lose its power. Save your game and go further north. You'll find the nuclear reactor that Kage Mishima has been using to power the Daikatana. Suddenly, Superfly and Mikiko will be attacked when the lights go out, and Mikiko will reveal that the Daikatana is not only back in the hands of the Ebiharas, but that she attacked Superfly and that she was evil the whole time. You'll learn that the Ebihara clan was that of thieves and bandits, and that the Mishima Shogun oppressed and annihilated them. In order to change their fate, her ancestors cheated Usagi and stole the Daikatana, proving that Ebihara's story was a lie. Usagi, however, had other plans, and threw himself into Mt. Fuji along with the Daikatana.

Get in the corner and keep shooting Mikiko with the Novabeam. Mikiko will run off into a secret room to the north, and Hiro and Superfly chase her into the reactor core. Mikiko runs at Hiro to try to push him into the lava inside the core room, but Hiro dodges and Superfly falls in as he tries to save Mikiko. The Daikatana returns to Hiro, and Hiro, knowing that sorrows and betrayals like these will happen in other times and other places, takes the Daikatana and travels through time to make sure this never happens again.

Hiro travels to a parallel world where Mikiko, her dad Toshiro and Superfly are still alive. Toshiro tells Mikiko not to worry about the mistake made by completing the quest for the Daikatana, but Mikiko is worried about leftover signs of Kage Mishima and feels they should ask Usagi's descendant Hiro for help. Toshiro thinks about battling Mishima to get an advantage with Hiro's help, but Superfly is not sure about the existence of the Daikatana. Toshiro says they should stop looking for the sword, but Mikiko refuses to give up, saying Daikatana must be found so that the Ebihara can rule the world and create a utopia, even if she must find it alone. Hiro is back at his dojo with Kage Mishima shows up, wanting his help to overthrow the dictator Ebihara and wanting to know if he knows about the Daikatana's existence. The game then ends, the credits roll, and you get a rank based on how good you were, how fast you were and how little you died. 

Kikoskia plays Daikatana - Part 9 of 10

We're getting close to Kage Mishima, and his tower has been constructed to make it anything but easy to get to him!

Alcatraz, Shuttle Area, Mishima's Office and Heliport Map (by StarFighters76)

For the teleporter maze, you want to take the right center teleporter, go down, go up, then to the right to get the Experimental Data. Do the reverse to get all the way back. From there, get the data back to Mikiko's ancestor. Thankfully, your controls will not be reversed on the way back.

You'll learn that Mikiko's ancestor has been wary of Kage Mishima for the past few days, and he will give you an access card that will allow you access to anywhere. He will also tell you that Kage is heading to the Naval Base, and that he should be at the heliport right now. You'll then take control of Hiro again.

Go to the elevator to the west and north and take it upwards. Save your game at the roof and head north. Hit the button at the far north to open up a ladder to the helicopter, then make your way east and downwards to hit a red button that lets you open up a path to the east of the elevator. Hit the gray button on the other side of the now-lowered gate to get a platform moving near the red button. Get back to the red button, take the platform, jump to the south when it stops, and make your way to the heliport. Hiro grabs the helicopter, then sees a vision of someone killing Usagi after hitting the ground. The helicopter then comes back, and Superfly Johnson rejoins Hiro and Mikiko. It turns out that this is another helicopter from the Naval Base, where Mishima's tower is located. The three of them head to the Navy Base, but they do not have the landing code. Thankfully, Superfly conveniently kept the pilot around, and the pilot promises to give them the code if they don't kill him. He inputs the code, then everyone lands at the base. 

Navy Base and Mishima's Tower Map (by StarFighters76)

The guard at the guard tower throws grenades, but you can hit him from the side, violating the laws of perspective in the process.

The light blue guy shoots at you with a bazooka if you give him enough distance. Sidestep when he pulls it out.

The red motorcycle will quickly move across the screen repeatedly. Stay at the entrance or a spot with solid objects and keep slashing the Daikatana towards it until it dies.

The path leading to the tower is pretty linear, and also contains ninjas that move towards you. They can easily be bested with the Daikatana. When you enter the sewer, do not jump into the water; you will drown and lose health before being returned to dry land. When you reach the huge waterway with the button, jump onto the button to activate a bridge as well as a boss battle. Stay on the button, face north, equip the Glock 2020 and shoot at the boss' head when it is across from you. You'll eventually be able to beat this boss.

You'll find more Glock 2020 ammo on the other end, then you'll enter the tower only to be confronted by Kage Mishima and a Navy General. Kage kills the General, then Hiro and company are surrounded by Kage's troops in an attempt to frame them for the murderer.

Hiro, Mikiko and Superfly are thrown into an all-wooden jail cell. Kage promises to release all three of them if Hiro becomes one of his men. Hiro refuses, and Kage tells him to consider the offer carefully and that the Mishimas paid Usagi to forge the Daikatana. Usagi shows up when Hiro calls for him, and lights up the torches in the room before opening the door to the cell.

Save your game. When you go up the stairs, there will be a rather linear maze with a couple of dragon statues and buttons in front of each one. There are doors, but there is no way to open any of them...

Kikoskia plays Daikatana - Part 8 of 10

We get into the research facility where the vaccine is being made, but we still have our work cut out for us...

Alcatraz, Shuttle Area, Mishima's Office and Heliport Map (by StarFighters76)

Head further west and destroy the guards, and follow the path. The guard with the gun to the north is very slow, but can easily be beaten. When you beat the two guards to the north, the security system will engage and you won't be able to go further. Head back to the start and go to the security panel to the north to find a hidden passage.

From here, move the yellow crate to the upper-left corner and into the water. This will un-flood the area leading downstairs and allow you to move further. Go south and go downstairs, then head west and get the Bomb. From here, go into the passage downstairs and beat up the guards you see, then walk up to the big rock on the left to blow it up with the Bomb. From here, head back to where you picked up the Bomb to grab another one, then blow up the rock on the left for the second set. You'll be able to continue on, but you can grab yet another bomb and get the green Capsule in this area if you wish.

From here, you can take the conveyor belts, or you can leap onto the big gray crates to get around. From here, walk up to the brown box near the stairs leading to the top of the big gray crate. A claw will pick you up and get you onto the nearby freighter.

You'll then be on top of a truck with Mikiko, but Superfly will be separated from the group. Mikiko is certain that Superfly will be okay on his own. You'll be Hiro again. As you go to the west, check the insides of the trucks. One of them will contain an Electric Tool that you will need later, while the other contains a green Capsule.

You'll eventually leave the parking lot and be in Mishima's offices. To the east is a set of switches that will all have to be changed to blue in order to get rid of the lasers blocking the passage north. This leads to a train that you can ride to the laboratory. Hiro uses the Daikatana on the control panel to get the train to think he is Kage Mishima.

The Meta Masers are actually grenades.

Get off the train and head north. Fight off the guards, and you'll be able to get on the elevator and travel up to the next floor. The gray control panel to the east of the second floor entrance will keep giving you access cards for all the doors up ahead. You'll find Meta Masers as well as cartridges for the Glock 2020 (there is another one outside when you leave the train) as well as paths to others, but you'll have to keep going back and forth between the doors and the access card dispenser to find everything.

You'll eventually find another guard to fight to take another elevator to a higher floor. Interact with the panel in the floor to find another boss. This brain-like thing flies around and can easily be destroyed with the Glock 2020. When the brain-like mass turns into two smaller versions of itself, destroy the two masses quickly or else the small one that isn't dead will turn into a big one, starting the battle over. After the battle, you'll be able to open a path north and get the High Level Access card as well as a green Capsule and some Meta Masers. Just remember to jump over the flashing tiles.

Go to the west, fight off the guards and use the High-Level Card on the access panel. From here, get the Glock 2020 catridge and the green Armor, then save your game if you need to. The man in the room to the west will tell you that there is a machine that will upset the lab workers' sense of direction. Another worker further to the west is Mikiko's ancestor from 2030. He doesn't believe them until Hiro and Mikiko mention the Daikatana, and he asks them to bring him experimental data from the top-secret research room. To get there, however, they have to pass a DNA check that nobody but a member of the Ebihara family can pass. From here, you'll be playing as Mikiko.

The gray panels with the orange lines moving around are the DNA checkers, and Mikiko can interact with them to pass the DNA check.

The tiles with the green and orange arrows reverse your controls, so you'll have to press the Control Pad in the direction opposite the one you want to go in to go through the maze without touching the flashing tiles. If you need to take out any enemies, use the Glock 2020. When you leave the maze, your controls will be back to normal, but you'll be in another maze full of teleporters...

Kikoskia plays Daikatana - Part 7 of 10

In this episode, we reforge the Holy Sword and fight a dragon before traveling further into the future.

Plague Village and Garroth's Castle

Before you can do anything else, however, you need to get the last Pieces of the Holy Sword and reforge the sword, and to do that, you'll have to go to the area with the boulder falling repeatedly into the pit. From here, you can jump from the heft of the pit to the other side, then uses the alcoves to avoid the boulders coming out of the wall to the north. From here, you can head further north and fight a giant bat. Wait for it to get close to your level, then swat away at with the Daikatana. When the giant bat dies, it becomes cooled-down rock that acts a bridge to the north. By going north, you'll do this one more time for the fifth and last Pieces of Holy Sword. The Holy Sword has been restored!

With the Holy Sword restored, head back into the cabin to cure Mikiko, who will rejoin your party. From here, if you take the path to Windrax's tower again, you'll find a man who will repair weapon. Since you have Nharre's Wand, he will look at it and find a key to the guest room inside, which he then gives to you.

You can now go through the door north of the castle entrance. Equip the Ballista and go north, and don't forget to save your game. You'll meet King Gharroth, who will be surprised that the Holy Sword is reformed as he has been told that the Holy Sword caused the plague. He calls for Nharre, but Nharre is destroyed. King Gharroth does not believe this until he sees Nharre's wand, then fights you to avenge his death. Move around in a circle, and when he swings his sword, move to the side so he doesn't dash into you. Keep hitting him with the Ballista along the way.

When you beat King Gharroth, he will notice the Queen's Necklace and mention that his wife was the first to fall to the plague. Not only that, but she wanted him to put her out of her misery with the Holy Sword. Gharroth realizes that Nharre took advantage of him while he was in deep shock, and returns to his old self with the power of the Holy Sword after Father Musilde and his brother show up. Gharroth asks Musilde to take the Healing Leaf and make medicine from it for everyone who is still alive. Musilde and his brother leave, then Gharroth offers Hiro anything he wants. Suddenly, Nharre shows up again and threatens to burn the entire village down.

You'll then face a dragon, Equip the Holy Sword and attack the dragon from a distance, as the Holy Sword has its own projectile a la The Legend of Zelda. Watch out for the dragon's projectiles as well as its diving attack. If the dragon shows up on the left or right sides of the screen, move; otherwise, shoot at it with Holy Sword projectiles. This boss will take a while, so save your game when the battle begins.

When you beat Nharre for a second time, your maximum HP will increase to 350 and King Gharroth will thank you. Hiro asks for Gharroth's power for the Daikatana and gets it, then Hiro and company travel through time again. They soon meet Kage Mishima, and Kage tells Hiro that his family will die by his betrayal.

Alcatraz, Shuttle Area, Mishima's Office and Heliport Map (by StarFighters76)

You'll end up in San Francisco in the year 2030, where Kage Mishima changed history by stealing the vaccine. You'll play as Superfly here. Start off by grabbing the Glock 2020 and searching the dressers for green armor, which give you 200 Armor Points.

Equip the hammer and destroy the guard, then enter the cell with the prisoner. He will tell you how Kage Mishima showed up with futuristic weapons and took over the whole world.

Kikoskia plays Daikatana - Part 6 of 10

In this episode, Superfly falls for what feels like the oldest trick in the book and we go through a teleporter maze. This won't be the last maze in the game, either.

Plague Village and Garroth's Castle

As you go through the corridor, you'll fight more of those enemies that go down with one swing of the Hammer, and you'll end up in the same place where King Gharroth smashed the Holy Sword. Here, you'll find the Queen's Necklace in front of the Queen's grave as well as a flower. If you face it and interact with it, you'll find a Pieces of Holy Sword. You'll also find a green Capsule here, should you need it.

There is a woman north of the corridor leading to the Queen's grave. If you talk to her with the Queen's Necklace in your possession, she will give you the Key to Windrax Tower and ask you to bring the King back to his senses. you'll be able to enter the door to the north. Beat up the archer, and stand on the grey and brown tile.

From here, step on the tiles in the following order: lower-left, then lower-right. Move carefully to avoid being zapped by the dragon head statues, then go north and step on the tile to the right. Take the Bolter cartridge to the south without being zapped, then head north. Walk up to what looks like a white basket that is spawning rats and keep attacking it, and you'll open the door to the north as well as get a red Capsule for your trouble. Save your game, then go north. You'll then face Windrax.

Equip the Bolter. From here, you'll have to anticipate where Windrax teleports, face him and shoot at him with the Bolter, then quickly move away to avoid his own projectile. This will take some practice, but it is possible. If you get hit, you'll lose 50 HP, so you'll have to be very careful. For best results, stand in the center of the room. That way, he'll only teleport to one of four locations in the room. If you feel you can't hit him in time, dodge, then try again. Don't try to attack afterwards, as you won't be able to hit Windrax in time.

After enough Bolter shots to Windrax, your maximum health will go up by 50 points and you'll get three times: a Pieces of Holy Sword, a Key for the Tower of Nharre and a Healing Leaf. The key does what you expect it to do, but the Healing Leaf is a little harder to figure out.

Head to the right end of the castle and go down the stairs. Interact with the two candlesticks to light them with the Flint. The door to the north will open, and you'll be able to follow the underground path. You'll eventually reach a large area covered in lava, and you'll have to jump carefully and push rocks into the lava to make easier paths to places you need to go.

The blue Capsule will refill 200 HP, and is the best Capsule in the game.

You'll eventually come a cross a big pit that large boulders are falling into. You won't be able to do anything from the the south end, so you'll have to find a way to the other side. On the west side of the maze, you'll find a door that can be unlocked with the Tower of Nharre Key.

When you go in, there will be three brown-and-gray teleporter tiles. Take the upper-left tile, the lower-left tile, and the lower-left tile again. Cross the room to get to another tile, then save and go north again. You'll meet Nharre's servant, who will tell you that Nharre is inside the pot in the center of the room. Superfly looks in the pot only to get sucked in, and Nharre's servant is really Nharre, who runs to the north. When you follow him north, you'll be in a room that looks like Hiro's dojo. The two students inside will attack you, so strike back with the Daikatana.

When you beat the "students," you'll end up back in the castle. Go north and face Nharre. Equip the Bolter and fight him like you did Windrax. The only difference is that there will sometimes be a clone of Nharre along with the real one, but if you wait until there is only one, you'll hit the real one every time. If you do attack when two Nharres are on the screen, you'll know which one is the real one by seeing if your Bolter arrow goes through him. If it does, that's the fake one. It's better to wait until there's only one Nharre.

Once you beat Nharre, he will flee, and you'll get Nharre's wand. Head back to the pot and approach it, and you'll free Superfly. He will mention that he found some things, and you'll be able to get them: Medicine as well as a Pieces of Holy Sword. You'll need the Medicine to cure Mikiko.

THE OWENS JOINS THE NEW DAY

This week in the ever-continuing adventures of THE OWENS...

Kikoskia plays Daikatana - Part 5 of 10

Of course that rat bite would give Mikiko the plague. Why wouldn't it? Also, "Windrax" sounds like Windex.

Plague Village and Garroth's Castle

The worms to the south of the church are very slow. Also to the south is a house, and if you search the dresser, you'll find some Flint. Take it. If you talk to the man in the bed, he will tell you to leave the village due to the plague before he dies.

To the west is a well. The man there is already dead. West still is the smithy, and if you go inside, Usagi's ancestor will show up and pull a book out of the bookshelf. This is the Book of Old Songs, and you're going to need it for later.

North of the smithy is an empty house where you can find a red Capsule. There is a doorway to the north, but you won't be able to get very far as the stairway is frozen and you won't be able to go down it...unless you go back inside and use the Flint in the fireplace to get some Hot Water to unfreeze the stairway.

South of the well is another house, and in one of the dressers is a Silver Claw that can be used as a weapon. The man in the bed will tell you about the plague, and ask how Father Musilde in the village church is doing.

North of the well is a gate, but it is locked by order of King Gharroth.

Go back to the frozen staircase and interact with it to pout the hot water on it. Go to the north, and you'll find the Rune Stone. Head back to the church. Believe it or not, the two boxes can be used as a stairway to the window on the right, which you can jump up to smash with the Daikatana. Just move the box on the right underneath the window, then get the left one next to it. Jump up, break the window and go inside. You'll find a cartridge for the Bolter and a door to the north. Pushing the boxes out of the way to the man in the corner is easy, and you'll be able to get a Rope along the way.

When you talk to the man, you'll be back in the main hall. You'll learn that this is Father Musilde, and he tells you that the village was peaceful until an unknown disease attacked the village. Around the same time, the rat population in the village grew. He also mentions that King Gharroth has totally changed when a strange wizard named Nharre approached the King, and that King Gharroth has become a tyrant ever since. Mikiko proposes that by defeating Nharre, King Gharroth will be his usual self again and lend his power to the Daikatana. King Gharroth's castle is beyond the sealed gate to the north.

If you talk to Father Musile again with the Book of Old Songs in your inventory, he will play on the organ and move the statue to the north to reveal another Rune Stone that you'll need.

You can now leave through the door to the church to go back to the village. Go to the well and interact with it. You'll be able to use the rope to climb down and get the Rune Stone. Go back to the gate, and you'll use the three Rune Stones to enter the castle. Father Musilde will show up and give you a charm, them Mikiko will mention that she feels dizzy before going in. The next door open automatically.

You'll then see a cutscene in King Gharroth's throne room, then you'll be able to control Hiro again. Save your game here. There is a cartridge for the Bolter (which you'll probably need) and a green Capsule that will refill 150 HP (which you may or may not need at the moment). When you go north, Nharre's first disciple Windrax will show up and activate a trap door, and you'll have to fight a beast. Equip the Bolter, stay away from the walls, and run away when this boss repeatedly punches so you don't get tackled and lose a lot of health. Another strategy you can utilize is to come into this battle with full health, stay near the boss and brute force your way through the battle by tanking damage and shooting the boss repeatedly with the Bolter. However you do it, you'll get the Jail Key.

The Jail Key will let you leave the room and meet Musilde's brother. Musilde will understand that his brother is still alive, then tell you that he was put in jail for warning King Gharroth of Nharre's plans. We see a flashback where Nharre persuades King Gharroth to break the Holy Sword. If Nharroth is defeated and the Holy Sword is restored, King Gharroth will come to his senses.

Use the Jail Key to leave this area. At this point, Mikiko wil be sick. Go into the nearby cabin and Mikiko will rest. If you interact with the nearby crate, you'll find a hidden room with two zombie-like enemies that will spit projectiles at you. Beat them from a distance. The two boxes will contain a Castle Key as well as a yellow Capsule.

Leave the cabin and open the doors to the north. As you explore, you'll find several Capsules as well as Bolter cartridges.  You'll also find the Ballista, which is more powerful and has its own ammunition. If you need to conserve health, equip the Hammer.

There is a corridor with brown enemies that look somewhat like Superfly. They will go down in one hit with the Hammer. There are four carpets in the room, and the one to the northeast has a pay-attention-and-you'll-notice indention in the upper-right corner signifying it is a tile you should stand on. Standing on it will open up the rest of the way.